Childhood cancer survivors at higher risk of heart attack, stroke or another cancer decades later due to the original treatment - Reuters (article link)

- premature deaths among survivors was 11 times the number expected in the general population.- largely due to exposure to radiation during treatment and to the more toxic cancer drugs.- 7 percent due to a recurrence of their original disease, 77 percent due to new cancers, heart disease, and so-called cerebrovascular disease, which causes high blood pressure and strokes.

High levels of good cholesterol HDL may be linked to lower risks of cancer - Reuters (article link)

- Each 10 mg/dL increase in HDL levels reduced cancer risk by 36%.- The risk of developing any type of cancer during follow-up decreased as a person's baseline HDL cholesterol levels rose.- "Our most effective HDL-raising drug that's currently available is niacin," -- Niacin is a B-vitamin, but given in mega-doses. People can increase their HDL levels by exercising, eating well, maintaining a healthy weight, drinking moderately, keeping their weight under control, and not smoking.

There was a relationship between increased pancreatic cancer risk and higher intakes of sugar, candy, honey and jam - Reuters (article links)

- Participants with the highest-glycemic index diets were 78% more likely to have pancreatic cancer.- It is possible that such diets could contribute to pancreatic risk, such foods influence the body's secretion of the blood-sugar-regulating hormone insulin -- And insulin encourages the growth and division of cells in the pancreas -- raising the possibility that the hormone could encourage the growth and spread of pancreatic cancer cells.

- T-DM1 -- an "armed antibody" that ties Roche Herceptin to a toxic chemotherapy compound from ImmunoGen.- results shrank tumors in 9 of 23 women whose cancer had worsened after a median of 8 prior treatments.- Herceptin is designed to block the function of HER2, a protein produced by a specific gene with cancer-causing potential, 25-30% of breast cancers.

- Women who take vitamin D every day were at 24% lower risk of breast cancer.- "T cell must have vitamin D or activation of the cell will cease."- "If the T cells cannot find enough vitamin D in the blood, they won't even begin to mobilize."- New "cancer treatment involves taking white blood cells and using a drug that trains them to more actively attack cancer cells." cancerimmune system tips

Several tips on reducing cancer risk from toxins and pesticides - CNN (video)

Does working nights and night-shift work cause breast cancer? - Reuters (article link)

Earlier research in animals had suggested that disturbances in the light-dark cycle could knock certain chemicals in the body, melatonin and estrogen off balance, and as a result increase cancer risk.- The WHO International Agency for Research on Cancer had concluded that night-shift work was a probable cause of cancer.- U.K. Health and Safety Executive issued a report estimating that almost 2,000 British women get breast cancer every year due to shift work.- A Chinese study however showed no sign of a connection between night-shift work and breast cancer.

Obesity accounts for 20% or more of cancer; A report that concludes Americans are under constant assault from carcinogenic agents - Reuters (article link)

One big problem -- people are soaked in chemicals, electromagnetic radiation, hormones and other known causes of cancer that can interact with thousands of genetic variations to start tumors growing -- or not. Figuring out whether any one ingredient is mutating a gene or set of genes in a certain way will be difficult.- Tobacco use and other unhealthy behaviors cause cancer.- Obesity; "The lack of physical activity, weight gain, obesity clearly account for 20% or more of cancer"- Alcohol; "We know that alcohol causes 4% of cancers.

- The new FDA approved cancer treatment involves taking a patient's own white blood cells and using a drug that trains them to more actively attack cancer cells. - "But the real breakthrough is the approval of this new way of treating disease, which could be used for other cancers and conditions, such as HIV"- "It's a landmark in the sense that it would be the first approved cell-based immune therapy,"

Women who reported taking at least 400 international units of vitamin D every day were at 24% lower risk of developing breast cancer - Reuters (article link)

Breast cells have receptors for vitamin D raising the possibility that the nutrient could help regulate the division and proliferation of these cells; -- There's also growing evidence that vitamin D could help protect against other types of cancer.

Mushrooms provide more selenium than any other fruit or vegetable, selenium believed to decrease some human cancers. - CBC News (article link)

“One of the most significant health benefits is the potential role played in inhibiting different types of cancer tumours,” says Hauck. “In fact, mushrooms provide more selenium than any other fruit or vegetable.”- Selenium contains a compound that is believed to decrease the incidence of some human cancers.- They also contain anti-inflammatory compounds similar to those in over-the-counter painkillers.- Source: Mushrooms Canada,www.mushrooms.ca

"Unlike chemotherapy, the side effects of arsenic (in treating acute promyelocytic leukemia) are very low. There is no hair loss or suppression of bone marrow (function). We are interested in finding out how arsenic can be used in other cancers,"

- "Processed meat contains compounds that could damage cells and thereby cause cancer. Conversely, the omega-3 fatty acids found in fatty fish are thought to be good for health in many ways and may possess anti-cancer properties."- Processed meats preserved with nitrites and nitrates can form nitrosamines, known causes of cancer in animals.

The regulator of gene expression transcription factor NF-kappaB also plays an important role in the immune system and in inflammatory processes. - (news flash)

- The regulator of gene expression transcription factor NF-kappaB triggers a survival program, which blocks programmed cell death and opposes p53, p53 has a key function in the activation of programmed cell death called apoptosis.- DNA damage can be caused by oxidative Stress, free radicals and reactive chemicals generated as byproducts of cellular metabolism, x-rays, ultraviolet radiation, environmental carcinogens, DNA-damaging chemicals, and errors in cell division. - If not repaired properly, the damage leads to mutations, which over time can cause serious disease such as cancer.

Researchers discovered that the DNA damage detector PARP-1 plays a key role in the activation of transcription factor NF-kappaB. Years ago they were able to show that NF-kappaB plays a key role in tumor cell survival.- The regulator of gene expression transcription factor NF-kappaB triggers a survival program, which blocks programmed cell death and opposes p53, p53 has a key function in the activation of programmed cell death called apoptosis.- PARP-1 recognizes sites of DNA damage within seconds and then attracts several proteins to form a complex in the cell nucleus.- "We have thus identified the start signal for NF-kappaB activation" -- "the hope to identify targets for the development of drugs, which allow to switch off the survival factor NF-kappaB in cancer diseases."

Researchers solve a crucial piece of the DNA repair response puzzle; A protein named CtIP plays an essential role in the DNA damage "signal-to-repair" process - EurekAlert! (article link)

The researchers depleted CtIP from human cells and caused DNA damage. Without the CtIP, they discovered, the cells could no longer trim back the damaged DNA strands, which brought the whole repair process to an abrupt halt.- "CtIP is another important player in the double-strand break response," says Hunter. "We have added another piece to the complex puzzle of DNA repair."- Some studies have estimated that the DNA in a single human cell gets damaged over 10,000 times every day.- If not repaired properly, the damage leads to mutations, which over time can cause cancer.